Mammoth Council Looks Ahead During Recession

It has been said by the likes of Mammoth Mountain CEO Rusty Gregory, and many others, that during an economic downturn like the one the world is seeing now, agencies and governmental bodies should be planning for the future even if they dont have the means to implement the plans just yet.

With that in mind, the Town of Mammoth Lakes is working toward a more business-like approach to the way government runs, and the Town Council is working on a model that aligns core services with projected revenues to develop the budget and review Council decisions. According to the agenda bill from the February 18 Council meeting, The purpose of this new model is to allow for disciplined, accountable and transparent decisions.

In a special meeting held on February 19, Council expected to take the four over-arching Strategic Initiatives that had been extracted from the General Plan Community Vision and use them as a model for how to provide mission critical services, or services that must get done to keep the Town running. The four initiatives are: a great place to work and live; a community with high quality design and development; a premier year-round resort; and a leader in environmental sustainability.

We want the community to understand what the Town is providing for them, said Council woman Jo Bacon who sits on the Budget Subcommittee and helped spearhead this process. Basically we are building a budget guide.

Council will look at ways to work across departments in order to provide the best services with the limited means they have. Some departments are already doing this, as Community Development Director Mark Wardlaw pointed out in an earlier presentation. His department is already working across the board with Public Works and Tourism and Recreation in order to be more efficient and effective.